Phineas Gage was a railroad construction foreman in the mid-1800s who miraculously survived a blasting accident that drove an iron rod straight through his skull. Although he could still walk and speak, the brain damage changed him from someone known to be quiet and respectful into a person who was gross, profane, coarse, and vulgar. He was dismissed from his job and his friends said that “he was no longer Gage”.
